Search results for

"label/abandoned"

abandoned rubber factory

by Kaylah Stroup
abandoned, factory, ohio

After a seriously inactive 2016, Jeff and I have been doing our best to get out and take more photos this year. I have to say, we’re kind of kicking butt. For the last solid month, possibly longer, we’ve been getting out at least once per week to search for abandoned places that we haven’t been to or at least haven’t been to a while. Because we’ve been so active I actually have a small backlog of rad photos that I still need to share from our recent adventures. It feels so darn good!

When we go on vacation, Klaus goes to my parents. Our New Orleans trip a few weeks ago was from Monday until Friday. Instead of heading straight to pick up Klaus after getting back we tried to make the most of the fact that we had a dog-sitter still and a weekend with no plans. We decided to head to a town nearby that is chock-full of abandonment. We went hoping to find brand new spots to explore but knew that there was a rubber factory that was essentially a sure thing in case everywhere else fell through.

Jeff had been here many years before and didn’t necessarily talk it up to be anything special. We had also tried on one previous occasion to explore it but shortly after exiting the car a cop drove by… and then another. We took it as a bad omen and called it quits before even starting. That little peek didn’t really leave me too interested. From the road it just looked like a shell of a factory – cool to snap a photo of but not really worth the effort or risk of trespassing. Oh how wrong I was…

abandoned ohio

Just like the Rubber Bowl, an abandoned stadium I had known about for a while but failed to make much effort to visit, this factory and it’s many buildings turned out to be pretty darn rad. While there wasn’t too much left inside there were still lots of interesting sights to behold. I was particularly smitten with the shoes dangling from the ceiling. Seriously, why are there always so many shoes in abandoned buildings? Shoes here, shoes there.

What I thought would be a quick stop of us just dipping onto the property, snapping a few photos, and leaving quickly turned into a couple of hours. This factory complex closed twenty seven long years ago. Multiple buildings still stand but a vast majority have been demolished, at least their upper levels have been. The property is littered with holes, both large and small, giving you a peek as to whats down below. Definitely a place you have to watch your step, lest you end up breaking an ankle or worse!

The photo below was taken from inside one the aforementioned holes. Jeff loves all things underground, and I do too… with some hesitation. While he raced to the opening with access to a small underground room, I poked around at the opening feeling a little bit too sketched out to want to spend anytime underneath the surface. Behind me were stairs, well, stairs covered in pieces of brick and overgrown with weeds. To my right was solid wall, and to the left was a drop down. I eventually went underground but ended up liking this photo better than anything I took down there. I think it’s a really neat shot.

So, note to self, stop avoiding all the things in life you thinks are easy and therefore not worth it because they’re actually probably pretty darn rad.
xoxo


If you haven’t gotten your grime fix, be sure to browse my “abandoned” tag!

Save

Save

Save

Save

FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

10 favorite abandoned spots of 2016

by Kaylah Stroup

Although I didn’t go inside, this was one of my favorite exteriors. Don’t try to deny the fact it looks like a puppy!

The past two years I’ve made lists of my favorite abandoned places I visited over the course of the year. Despite the fact this year’s numbers are low, I think I actually only blogged about just over ten spots, I still wanted to make this list. Because I really love making lists, and because a lot of the places I explored this year hold some sort of special value to me. From the Knox County Poorhouse where I showed up on demolition day by accident but ended up getting a personal tour from the owner to the Rubber Bowl where my mom had seen the Rolling Stones many years before or Two Guns which I consider “our spot” since Jeff and I have such fun memories there. My numbers weren’t huge but the adventures were great.


abandoned trailer, theres always a chair



graveyard,

abandoned, camp building


abandoned, akron, rubber bowl


abandoned building, Cleveland, sunset

Bonus spot – not abandoned at all but it still kind of fits in the same category. This was one of my favorite nights, and I’m still excited about those photos.

Hopefully 2017 will include more abandoned buildings. I certainly miss it. Here’s to another year of great adventures!

xoxo

Check out previous year’s favorite abandoned places here – 2014 + 2015.

You can find the rest of my posts on abandoned places under the “abandoned” tag. 
FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

Artful Blogging feature

by Kaylah Stroup
The Dainty Squid magazine feature

I feel a little bit like a braggart writing this post right now considering the fact I was on the cover of Cleveland Magazine last month and wrote a whole post about that. But y’all, this girl doesn’t exactly get featured in magazines everyday, it just so happens that two months in a row I have been though! Wooooo! This time around it’s the summer 2016 edition of Artful Blogging.

This feature is a little different than my last. Instead of an interview, I actually wrote a short piece about my blogging process. That along with a handful of my photos span three whole pages. Ahhh! I let them choose which photos to include just because I honestly wasn’t sure why they liked me in the first place. Not in a “I think my photos are crap” or “I’m not confident in my work” way but in “your magazine looks so pretty and sometimes I blog about dead things and abandoned places…” kind of way. Haha! The Dainty Squid does have a pretty diverse variety of subject matter so it was really interesting for me to see it summarized by someone else in a handful of photos. Aaaand I am over the moon about seeing my photos in print. SO. STINKEN. COOL.

I have nothing else to say that wouldn’t involve writing the word “excited” about fifty more times so I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who reads The Dainty Squid. It’s a really crazy feeling to know that a whole bunch of people I’ve never met swing by my little corner of the internet just check in on me, my critters, and all our crazy adventures. When I started this blog so many years ago I never imagined that I would have so many amazing readers or that I would ever be featured in magazines. It’s crazy, it’s the best and I couldn’t do it without ya! I love the heck out of all of you.

Artful Blogging is available for purchase here, it’s also available at a variety of stores (Check out the store locator!)
xoxo

FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

Salton Sea of the Midwest – 2016

by Kaylah Stroup

Yesterday Jeff and I took a drive to one of our favorite little vacation spots of yesteryear, the abandoned trailer park. We first discovered this spot in early 2015 and have since made a few voyages there. It doesn’t seem to be losing it’s charm for either of us. It’s such a cool spot and it seems like each visit I find something new. Yesterday, multiple times, I said “I don’t remember seeing this last time, do you?!”

I wish I had more information on this place since I really do enjoy sharing that sort of stuff in my posts about abandoned places but I’ve got nothing on this spot. The most I can offer you is that this was a vacation area along a lake. The road is lined with rotting cottages, and colorful trailers, both full of furniture and possessions. No idea why it closed and why even if the grounds that the trailers were on closed that people didn’t come back to haul out their vacation homes. Seems awfully silly to just leave them, unless of course they weren’t owned individually but rented instead. Regardless, dishes left in the sink of one trailer make it look like there was intention to come back. Abandoned places like this one have such an air of mystery surrounding them.

abandoned chair,
abandoned, ohio, trailers, colorful trailers
abandoned,
abandoned, ohio, urbex

 I was a little nervous heading out on this trip that I wouldn’t be able to find anything different to shoot, that I would essentially be taking the same shots I had already taken. Aside from the few I tried to reshoot, I feel like I captured all new stuff. I’m really excited about my photos. I’m also really excited to continue to photograph this place, documenting how it changes. While trying to write this post I kept getting distracted, flipping back and forth between this and the old posts seeing how things have progressed.

The photo above is one of the few that I had remembered taking on a previous
visit and tried to at least somewhat replicate so I could compare. Without actually referencing the photo I’d say I did a pretty awesome job getting a very similar shot.
It looks drastically different since I last saw it just around a year
ago. (You can find the original photo in this post.) Ohio’s four very distinct seasons are definitely rough on abandoned things. I’ll never get over the huge difference between the stuff we have out here compared to the places we’ve found in the desert.
 

Our trip was fairly uneventful and quick. Middle of the day on a weekend is never really a good time to explore. Although this spot is obviously a bit secluded it’s near some occupied homes so we tried our best to be quick and quiet. The big excitement for me came hours later while laying in bed watching a movie. I was running my fingers through my hair when I felt something. I thought it was a scab, and I was curious but not too concerned so I pulled it out. I glanced at my finger and found a tick. Yuuuuuck! It’s pretty hard to gross me out and generally I love all sorts of creepy crawlies but I had to shower immediately after that. Ticks just freak me out. Those suckers are dangerous. I wasn’t just grossed out, I was offended this little jerk thought he could hitch a ride of me. I’m still really grossed out and basically want to stand in a scalding hot shower all day but I guess I should just be glad he never latched on. Moral of the story? Don’t forget to check for ticks, ALWAYS!

You can find other posts on this spot here – March 2015, March on film, and June 2015.
xoxo

FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

favorite 10 abandoned spots in 2015

by Kaylah Stroup
motel

Finally, the last of my 2015 recaps! The year before last I shared my 10 favorite abandoned spots of the year and couldn’t resist choosing my favorites from 2015. I didn’t get out as much last year as I did the previous year but regardless I still had some really amazing adventures. Factories, multiple trailer parks, a greenhouse, and even a stretch of highway that hasn’t been driven on in years. My favorite had to be the massive abandoned hospital though. I’ve honestly had multiple dreams about that place since. I’m chomping at the bit to go back!

highway

Here’s to another year of great adventures!
xoxo

You can find the rest of my posts on abandoned places under the “abandoned” tag. 
FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

This year I…

by Kaylah Stroup
played in tide pools for the first time ever.
got a big fat crush on Toronto!
grew lots and lots of plants.
tried more new foods than ever, and even kind of fell in love with cooking.
got to cross off a really silly goal that meant a whole lot.
then celebrated with a spur of the moment road trip tattoo.

started helping Anji out at the flower shop on occasion.

made the beach a cleaner place one neatly organized arrangement at a time.
made pals with lots of new critters including the always adorable Foxy Lady, and Tramp, and some friendly squirrels along the coast.
fell even more deeply in love with both the desert, and my favorite adventure partner.
did some highly questionable things like moving a mattress and lockers on top of Jason’s car.
spent a great deal of pedaling, a lot of the time just to go sit at the beach.
moved into a new apartment.
got back into one of my favorite hobbies.
experienced some truly magical sunsets, my favorite being in Morro Bay.
bought a new car two days before the end of the year!

And oh so much more!

For the past few years I’ve been doing a “This year I…” post. See 2011, 2012, 2013, +2014. 
If you do a “This year I…” post, leave a link in the comments. I’d love to check it out. 
FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

Abandoned hospital

by Kaylah Stroup

Last weekend I finally got to explore an abandoned hospital! Like a lot of people I am terrified of hospitals, for not good reason at all. An abandoned hospital though? It has been on my list of places to get for so long. We actually had scoped out this place last year and didn’t see an entrance. I wasn’t super confident we’d be able to get inside this year but it was worth a shot.

We parked, got out, and started walking around the hospital in order to get some exterior shots, and possibly find a way in. Within a few minutes a car showed up, and headed right for us. The driver, an older woman, rolled down her window and asked “Are you guys urban explorers?” “Nope, just looking to take some photos of the outside.” She didn’t look convinced and now any chance of getting inside was shot. The last thing we needed was a concerned citizen thinking we looked suspicious… which we totally did. The three us dressed in dark clothes, all with backpacks and tripods. It’s beyond obvious what we’re up to. We continued to walk the perimeter of the building because technically there was nothing wrong with us doing that, right?

Jeff walked around the outermost perimeter while Jake and I stuck close to the building. When we rounded the corner there was Jeff chatting with the lady in the car. Jake and I walked over to join the conversation. Apparently she had a great interest in the hospital. She even revealed that a few years back she had been inside. It was at that moment we realized “okay, she’s not a threat!” She raved about how amazing it was and how much she enjoyed seeing it.  She wasn’t looking for a way in this time, just to photograph a peregrine falcon who was known to hang out on the roof.

The grounds of the hospital were hopping which is both good and bad. Good because us being there raises less of a concern if people are there often just to get a look at this giant building, and bad because that means someone could see us entering the building. While talking to the woman from the car, Joyce, we noticed a group of six teenage boys walking around the building. To me, they looked suspicious but teenage boys always kind of do. Then all of a sudden they just start disappearing inside! Well, there was our way in! We were actually going to get inside of this incredible building. I was on cloud nine.

We weaved our way into the main stairwell and started to climb. We went all the way to the top, stopping off at a few floors to explore a
few rooms but honestly, there was just so much to see. It was insane. I couldn’t believe we actually made it inside. After all this time I was finally inside an abandoned hospital. I was beyond excited. I was like a squirrel, just darting back and forth, chattering about how cool this was or how neat something looked. I just wanted to see it all! There were so many little details I wish I could have photographed them all. Room numbers, murals painted to make the place seem more inviting, medical equipment labels, etc.

We didn’t get to spend too much time inside since it was getting dark. If I haven’t already made it clear how large this place was let me just say it again, the hospital is huge. I’ve watched enough horror movies to know that I don’t want to be lost inside an abandoned hospital in the dark. We all agreed it was time to leave. It was a bit stressful trying to get out, especially since the bottom two floors have the windows boarded and that means it was pitch black. Even with awesome flashlights, which we each had, this place was one dark, creepy maze.

Once we finally found the spot where we had entered the building Jeff peeked out first to make sure the
coast was clear. There was a car so he ducked back down. A few seconds
pass and we hear the car park, and the door open then close. We looked
at each other with wide eyes, we thought we were screwed. There wasn’t
time to hide and in my mind, it was most definitely the police. Jeff
said “we’ve just got to own it”…

It was Joyce, the woman from earlier. She came back to check on the bird and spotted Jeff’s tripod which he had tossed out first. She thought we had lost it and was coming to pick it up. She was SO excited to see that we had gotten inside. We chatted with her for at least fifteen minutes. We talked birds, and abandoned buildings. She showed us photos of the peregrine falcons from the area which she lovingly referred to as her babies. I had to take a deep breath and collect myself, this woman was amazing. I love nothing more than a person with a passion and she was clearly crazy about her hobbies. I truly regret not getting a group shot of the four of us together in front of the hospital.

It was an amazing day. I finally crossed an abandoned hospital off my list and we met Joyce, who definitely brightened my day. Seriously, what an amazing lady. I’m sure the chance of crossing paths with her again are slim but here’s to hoping!
xoxo

You can find more posts featuring abandoned places here. 

FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

abandoned party supply company

by Kaylah Stroup

Whenever Jesi comes to Cleveland to hang out I always rack my brain to think of awesome places to take her. This city has no shortage of abandoned buildings but I want to take her places that will just wow her. The abandoned “rubber duck factory” was a hit and something that I felt would be super hard to top. My only real idea for our adventure was a building formerly home to a company that supplied window displays for large companies, and rented decorations for parties. The company closed in 2009 after nearly 80 years in business. The internet boom basically killed the need for a place like this, people can now order these things from the comfort of their own home instead of buying locally.

Before closing the company held a liquidation sale but clearly they weren’t able to get rid of everything. This building is chock-full of left over decorations. There are three floors, not including the basement, that are just absolutely packed with things. The floors seem to be somewhat organized by holiday or theme. The top level is Christmas. There are boxes upon boxes, still unopened, of tinsel, ornaments, even trees!

The second floor seems to have a lot of craft supplies. Massive bolts of now moldy fabric, and fake flowers litter the floor. Two large cutting tables sit on one side of the room. Shelving units now hold a few random bottles and an empty pack of cigarettes, signs others come here to a have their own party.
Sometime after closing a portion of the building caught fire. That and some pretty extensive water damage make the floors on one whole side of the building pretty dangerous to traverse across. Despite the fact this was my third time inside the building I still haven’t covered a lot of ground simply because it’s not worth the risk of falling through the floor. There are also lots of really really dark areas in the building, which I don’t venture into either. What can I say? When it comes right down to it, I’m a huge weenie. 
Even excluding those huge portions of the building I may never see, it’s incredible the wide range of things there are to discover. I understand that a lot of times it’s easier just to leave things behind especially in a situation like this where your business goes belly up but this just seems like such a huge waste. I can’t even imagine how much money worth of merchandise is still in this building, the great majority of it non-salvageable now.


My very first visit to this building was late at night during a storm. The rain was just pouring into the building like there was no roof at all. Even though it’s been abandoned for a while now but I can’t imagine it’ll stay up much longer. Ohio weather is rough on structures that have no one left to fend for them. Although I say it in nearly every abandoned post, I do look forward to visiting this building again in the future to see how it decays.
xoxo

FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

It’s the little things…

by Kaylah Stroup
My absolute favorite thing about spring time? BABY ANIMALS.

I’ve been living in the city for around a year and half now, and honestly couldn’t imagine living anywhere else but there will always be a part of me that loves the country. Along those same lines, I love shooting abandoned buildings, and gritty city stuff but nature photography will probably always be my favorite. Last weekend I got the chance to get my knees dirty and shoot a few small critters, including a very tiny painted turtle, a newborn flying squirrel, and two feisty snakes.

Above is one of my dad’s flying squirrel babies.This is at about a week old, they were born on the 24th of April. It’s incredible to see one of these little things so…fresh. Not only are the membranes it uses to glide see-through but so is the majority of his body. It’s just so strange to imagine this tiny fur-less thing will grow into this. Nature is wild, y’all!

I already feel like I have my dream job. But I think if there was a dream job v2.0 for me, it would be to be an animal photographer. You know what I really want to do? I want to shoot for zooborns! Just baby animals in front of my camera all day, every day with lots of snuggles thrown in there too, of course!
xoxo

FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Newer Posts
Older Posts